The third edition of The Great Himalayan Exploration has begun on the third of March, 2025 and will focus on documenting the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Indian Himalayan region. In this phase of the third edition, the expedition heads to Sikkim.
The Great Himalayan Exploration covered the Eastern Himalayas in 2022 and the Western Himalayas in 2024. The objective of the expedition is to identify and document 200 Intangible Cultural Heritage practices over the course of several years in partnership with Royal Enfield and UNESCO. A few select rider-researchers are chosen to take part and they ride to remote Himalayan regions, interact with local communities and document their ways of life.
Thus far, more than 60 such practices have been documented across eight Eastern Himalayan states and 12 in Ladakh through a total of 24 explorations. The expedition focuses on preserving the heritage and cultural diversity present in the Himalayas. Royal Enfield say that their social mission is to empower over 100 Himalayan communities to become resilient in the face of climate change. They say this could be in the form of initiatives such as fellowships and grants for the youth, biodiversity conservation, promoting sports and tourism and bringing together communities of artisans and designers.
This third edition of the expedition will run its course for a month and conclude on the third of April 2025. There will be two groups on the ride, one covering the Northern region and the other covering the South. Riders will experience many of Sikkim’s deep-rooted traditions including the Bhumchu Festival, Lepcha healing practices and Bhumthings, cardamom cultivation, Lepcha weaving, Churpi cheese making, Sikkimese mask making, Bhumthing prayers for Kanchenjunga, Dzumsa system of governance, yak grazing and nomadic herders as well as butter sculptures in Buddhist rituals.
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